Sunday Adeyemo, the self-styled activist whose extrajudicial vigilantism landed him in trouble with the law, has lost the 20BN damage awarded to him by the Oyo State High Court after the Ibadan Division of the Court of Appeal set aside the judgment on Tuesday, ruling it outrageous and groundless.
Adeyemo, otherwise known as Sunday Igboho, filed a suit at the Oyo State High Court seeking compensation for damages he suffered during an attempt by the DSS to secure his arrest over his vigilantism which included extrajudicial measures in a purported attempt to ‘counter insecurity’ – a duty exclusively assigned to the Police Force and other law enforcement by the constitution.
Finding merit in his claims, Justice Ladiran Akintola of the State High Court ordered the DSS to pay N20 billion to Igboho.
The decision was, however, overturned on Tuesday by the Court of Appeal. Justice Muslim Hassan, in his judgment, held that the Oyo State High Court lacked jurisdiction on the matter and that the judge erred by awarding the damages based on his personal parameters.
The development represents another bump for Igboho who was nabbed in the neighboring Republic of Benin while trying to flee to Europe after escaping arrest, despite previous boasts of his invincibility.